Kick Panel Rust...

[COACHMEASON]

My kick panels have some rust towards the bottom where it meets the floor (luckily, my only rust spot)..Ideas for fix? Maybe find a donor kick panel?

[hayhauler71]

Do you have some pics of the rusted area?

[COACHMEASON]

No...its in a shop about 15 miles away..I will try to get one later this week...Its probably an inch tall 2 inches wide...

[powell72]

The aftermarket makes a repair panel for that, I think it's around $15.

[leh72super1500]

My kick panels have the same, but its only about an inch up from the floor, fortunately it is all still solid with no holes. My plans are just to clean it up with a wire wheel, treat with rust mort and then smooth off with plastic filler and then paint.

[Dynomutt]

Originally Posted by COACHMEASON

My kick panels have some rust towards the bottom where it meets the floor (luckily, my only rust spot)..Ideas for fix? Maybe find a donor kick panel?

Not sure I'd say "lucky" it's the only rust spot. That's a pretty complicated area. There are patch panels made for it and if the rust is high enough above the floor it could be a pretty easy repair. If it's rusted down to the floor it could be a lot tougher. That panel pinches between the floor and the A pillar and, it's right where the front cab support ties in. You may end up cutting out a piece of the floor, even if it's good metal, and you may have an issue or two with the cab support in order to get all of the rust out of the kick panel and make the repair properly. Still shouldn't be a real bad repair but could be a lot more work than it appears to be.

I think I was lucky because everything around mine was rusted out so it made that panel easier to get to and repair.

Good luck with it.

[powell72]

Originally Posted by Dynomutt

Not sure I'd say "lucky" it's the only rust spot. That's a pretty complicated area. There are patch panels made for it and if the rust is high enough above the floor it could be a pretty easy repair. If it's rusted down to the floor it could be a lot tougher. That panel pinches between the floor and the A pillar and, it's right where the front cab support ties in. You may end up cutting out a piece of the floor, even if it's good metal, and you may have an issue or two with the cab support in order to get all of the rust out of the kick panel and make the repair properly. Still shouldn't be a real bad repair but could be a lot more work than it appears to be.

I think I was lucky because everything around mine was rusted out so it made that panel easier to get to and repair.

Good luck with it.

This is exactly right, and mine was the same way, everything I removed to get there was rusty also!

[mbgmike]

Originally Posted by Dynomutt

Not sure I'd say "lucky" it's the only rust spot. That's a pretty complicated area. There are patch panels made for it and if the rust is high enough above the floor it could be a pretty easy repair. If it's rusted down to the floor it could be a lot tougher. That panel pinches between the floor and the A pillar and, it's right where the front cab support ties in. You may end up cutting out a piece of the floor, even if it's good metal, and you may have an issue or two with the cab support in order to get all of the rust out of the kick panel and make the repair properly. Still shouldn't be a real bad repair but could be a lot more work than it appears to be.

I think I was lucky because everything around mine was rusted out so it made that panel easier to get to and repair.

Good luck with it.

We have done many,many of these trucks through the years.In fact there is not one panel that I have never worked on.
You are correct. This can be a tough area. I don't ever recall one however that rusted through just above the floor. Rust has shown up in some areas that are unusual but here I can pretty much say its at the floor. It is a water trap. Their is no easy fix to do it correct. None. Usually they can be replaced when doing the rockers and the pillar. Thats normal.
If the pillars are fine and the rockers are to, the only way to get to it is to cut a section of the floor to get access to the bottom of the kick plate. Then weld the section back in. If you have the skill its a part that you can make with limited tools and skill. You may want to make the replacement panel go up a little higher than the rusted area for ease of welding and saving your back. I lay on my stomach all the way across the cab. I can't twist around and weld anymore.

[Hart_Rod]

What they said...... I had to make the same repair you are talking about. If you look at my burb build thread, I show some decent step by step pictures of the process described above.

[COACHMEASON]

Thanks...

[mrein3]

Originally Posted by mbgmike

We have done many,many of these trucks through the years.In fact there is not one panel that I have never worked on.
You are correct. This can be a tough area. I don't ever recall one however that rusted through just above the floor. Rust has shown up in some areas that are unusual but here I can pretty much say its at the floor. It is a water trap. Their is no easy fix to do it correct. None. Usually they can be replaced when doing the rockers and the pillar. Thats normal.
If the pillars are fine and the rockers are to, the only way to get to it is to cut a section of the floor to get access to the bottom of the kick plate. Then weld the section back in. If you have the skill its a part that you can make with limited tools and skill. You may want to make the replacement panel go up a little higher than the rusted area for ease of welding and saving your back. I lay on my stomach all the way across the cab. I can't twist around and weld anymore.

It is a water trap AND back in 1967 - 1972 you didn't have a galvanized sheet metal that was then dipped in epoxy primer like you have in today's modern assembly facilities.

The back side of EVERY panel on our trucks that didn't get overspray, and isn't in the desert southwest is rusty. It is only a matter of time before you see it come bubbling around or through. Up here in the rust belt it is only accelerated by the application of salt spray six months out of the year. This is why ALL rockers eventually rust out. There isn't any paint on the back side of them! What happens to sheet metal that isn't painted after 40 years? Yup. Rust.

I recently drilled out all the spot welds on a bed side and separated the inner from the outer because I sould see surface rust in there. Not for the faint of heart. I'm afraid you desert guys would faint if you saw what I saw in there.

That kick panel area is a common rust out area in the rust belt. When you walk across the street in your boots, all that slush and snow you pick up is full of salt from the road. You get in and it all falls on the floor and melts from the heater. All that salt water runs into that seam.